Sir Roland Wilson Foundation

Sharon is Principal Behavioural Scientist and Director of the Behavioural Science Unit at the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.

For nearly a decade, Sharon has played a leadership role in promoting the use of behavioural science to put people at the centre of public policy.

Despite a range of inclusion initiatives, APS employees who identify as living with disability have lower rates of promotion at all levels, even when controlling for experience and education. Research is needed to better understand barriers to promotion and the under-representation of this cohort in leadership positions. Sharon’s research will employ a unique behavioural science and mixed methods approach to examine barriers and enablers, and develop an evidence-based behavioural intervention that can be applied across the APS to help crack the promotion ceiling and improve career equity for workers living with disability.

Since starting as a graduate at Comcare in 2011, Holly’s work experience has spanned corporate and enabling functions, specialising in strategy formulation, governance and evaluation frameworks, and non-financial performance measurement design. Prior to commencing as a Sir Roland Wilson Scholar, she was the Director Governance, Planning and Performance at the Department of Finance.

Holly’s PhD research program examines the drivers of meaningful Australian Public Service (APS) non-financial performance reporting, and how the service may move from reporting for regulatory compliance to commitment to regulatory intent. Holly’s research explores the roles regulatory accountability tools play in shaping APS perceptions of accountability requirements’ value, cultures, and entity responses. Holly’s research aims to mitigate unintended consequences of accountability reforms and harness positive drivers to support the APS’ desire to achieve the highest standards of integrity and performance.

Aaron is an economist with over a decade of experience in economic policy and applied research roles across Treasury, the Productivity Commission and the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts. His most recent role was as a Director leading a team of economists and data analysts conducting research on the infrastructure portfolio’s key strategic priorities. Aaron has experience across a wide range of public policy topics, including indirect tax, productivity measurement, veterans’ affairs, foreign investment, competition policy, aviation policy, transportation decarbonisation, and regional policy.

Aaron’s PhD research employs quantitative approaches to examine how work from home arrangements impact labour market outcomes. Aaron’s project is focused on the effect that work from home and remote work arrangements have on career progression and life outcomes for employees in the public and private sectors, as well as the indirect effects on regional economies and housing markets.

Josh is a Senior Analyst in the Trials Research and Evaluation Team within the Employment Evaluation Branch at the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR). Within this role, he’s been working with administrative data as part of several randomised controlled trials that evaluate the effectiveness of Australia’s online employment services settings. Prior to joining DEWR, Josh worked in Treasury’s microdata team where his labour market analysis supported several budgets, the participation chapter of the 2023 Intergenerational Report, and the Employment White Paper.

Josh’s thesis will focus on place-based inequality in the Australian labour market. He will explore how communities experience economic transition, and the ways that local industry structure and employer characteristics influence the wages and employment opportunities available to individuals. The use of administrative data – including ALIFE and PLIDA/BLADE – for this research will add a more detailed and precise understanding of these issues, supporting improved policy design and targeting. Josh hopes that his research will help support cross-agency efforts to target entrenched disadvantage, promoting policies which boost regional resilience and support those cohorts who are most vulnerable in the labour market.

Vanessa is a research psychologist and Director with 18 years of experience in the Australian Public Service (APS) across Defence and the Australian Public Service Commission. During her time at Defence, Vanessa led research covering military recruitment and retention, cultural reform, mental health, diversity, and organisational leadership. Since joining the APSC in 2021, she has held Director roles responsible for APS-wide workforce data reporting and research to inform APS workforce policies and strategies.

A 2024 Senate inquiry noted a need for research on whether menopausal symptoms may prompt women to reduce work hours, change job roles, forego promotion or leave work altogether. Vanessa’s research aims to explore this within the APS, and to uncover factors that may help workplaces to address this. She hopes that outcomes from her research will help the APS to maximise the potential of this experienced and important cohort.

Ronald has worked in the public service for the past 20 years, for agencies in Canberra and at the Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA) managing programs that deliver natural resource management across the Torres Strait Region. His most recent role at the TSRA involved working in the Governance and Leadership program managing legislative processes and policies, supporting effective regional communication, and coordinating the integration of the delivery of government services to the region.

Through the Pat Turner scholarship and Master of Public Policy program at CDU, Ronald will look for opportunities and pathways to help him gain a deeper understanding of complex policy, especially arrangements and implementation in the Northern Australian context. In addition, he will explore how policy arrangements can improve essential and critical service delivery in the Torres Strait, improving the lives of Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginal people in the region.

Claire is a Torres Strait Islander (Maluilgal from the western islands) who grew up on Badu Island. She has a Bachelor of Education from James Cook University and started her career as a primary school teacher. Motivated by the drive to improve the educational outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students on a large scale, she took up the opportunity to move to Canberra to work in the Australian Public Service (APS). Throughout her APS career, Claire has undertaken various leadership, policy, coordination and program management roles, across a range of agencies, including the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, the Australian Public Service Commission, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the National Indigenous Australians Agency.

Education has been an area of significant focus throughout Claire’s career. She has worked predominantly on national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education policy and managed a range of flagship government initiatives and programs aimed at improving education outcomes. She has a Master of Business Administration from the University of Canberra and recently completed her PhD at the Australian National University, under a Sir Roland Wilson Pat Turner scholarship. Claire’s thesis (currently under examination) focused on the Commonwealth’s role in redressing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander educational inequity.

Claire is a senior executive at the Commonwealth Department of Education and leads the Research Policy and Programs branch. Her branch aims to ensure that Australian researchers have access to cutting edge national research infrastructure and that the research system is meeting the current and future needs of research students and the research sector.